


The Art of War (and Love)

by Ellana17



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Flirting, Humor, Idiots in Love, Love Confessions, M/M, Matchmaking, Meddling, Pining, Post-Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie), Team Dynamics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-08
Updated: 2018-05-08
Packaged: 2019-05-04 02:47:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,315
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14583258
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellana17/pseuds/Ellana17
Summary: Steve applies the Art of War to his relationship with Tony. They do say love is a battlefield, after all.





	The Art of War (and Love)

**Author's Note:**

> I have no excuse for this.

After Tony left the compound, Steve found himself wandering the corridors until he found himself in the communal area. The man spotted Vision on the couch, and Steve was surprised to see him reading an actual book. The AI had taken to trying to understand humans better, which involved wearing actual clothes and, apparently, reading.

“Has Mr. Stark left the premises?” Vision asked in a steady voice without glancing away from the pages.

“Yes,” Steve answered. “Did you need to talk to him?”

“Not at all, I merely deduced from your presence in this room that Mr. Stark might have left.”

Steve decided it wiser not to ask Vision what he meant by that. “What are you reading?” he asked instead.

“Sun Tzu’s the Art of War,” Vision answered matter-of-factly. “Of course, I already have access to this knowledge,” he said, touching a hand to his head, “but-”

“It’s not the same,” Steve agreed, sitting down next to his teammate.

“So”, Sam exclaimed as he entered the room with a bag of chips. “How was Stark?” he asked, sitting comfortably next to Steve on the couch.

Steve glared and crossed his arms over his chest. That couch had not been made for three grown men to sit comfortably.

“We didn’t really had time to chat, Sam, he just came by to take a look at my suit.”

“Huh,” Sam smirked, picking another chip. “So that’s what you’re calling it.”

“Sam-”

“I’m just saying, man. He's not with Pepper anymore, so now’s your chance.”

Steve huffed in annoyance. “They’re simply taking a break,” he pointed out. “They’ll get back together eventually.”

“That’s not going to happen,” Natasha said from behind them.

Sam jumped in fright. “Jesus, where do you even come from?” he muttered.

Natasha perched on the armrest. “You need to be more aware of your surroundings, Wilson,” she told him calmly.

“Yeah, ah, ah,” Sam drawled.

“What do you mean they're not getting back together?” Steve asked, ignoring the familiar bickering.

Natasha took a chip from the bag, much to Sam’s annoyance. “Pepper can't handle the superheroing anymore,” she finally said. “And we all know Tony's not going to give that up. It won’t be long before they realize they don’t belong together anymore.”

Steve frowned. “So you’re just guessing?”

“I’m using the information in my possession to come to the most likely conclusion,” Natasha countered.

Sam nodded in agreement. “She’s got a point,” he acknowledged. “Come on, man, I hate seeing you like this.”

Natasha nodded. Steve huffed and picked the book Vision had discarded moments before. He did not need his friends’ unsolicited advice about his lack of love life.

As Natasha and Sam kept conversing quietly, Wanda made her way inside the room. The conversation finally steered away from Steve and the man started flicking through the book in his hands. _To lift an autumn hair is no sign of great strength._ Steve frowned. Of all things, Vision had decided to read that kind of book, he thought, shaking his head in disbelief. Steve went back to the first page and started reading attentively.

_All warfare is based on deception. Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near._

Oddly enough, that sounded exactly like what Sam and Natasha had told him about modern flirting. Steve took a sharp intake of breath. Of course! Steve had never been much of a flirt back in the day; his idea of liking someone had mostly been tripping over his own feet but strategy, warfare, that he was pretty good at. Steve was going to take actions.

_According as circumstances are favorable, one should modify one’s plans._

Steve stood up suddenly, startling Sam, who dropped his bag of chips on the ground.

“Not cool, man,” his friend exclaimed.

Yes, Steve thought. He knew exactly what to do now.

 

Steve had memorized the whole content of the book without realizing it.

_If you know the enemy and know yourself, your victory will not stand in doubt._

He found Rhodey training alone in the gym. Steve had thought about who might have the more insight about Tony and the first name to pop in his mind had been Pepper’s of course. However, asking personal questions about Tony to the man’s ex-girlfriend had seemed somewhat inappropriate. Steve might have been inept at relationships but even he could see that. Happy was not much of an option either. Steve liked Happy well enough but the man did not seem to trust him very much; which led Steve to Rhodey, Tony’s best friend.

“Hey Steve,” Rhodey greeted, throwing another swing at the punching bag.

“Need me to spot you?” Steve asked, putting both hands on either side of the bag.

“Sure, why not,” Rodhey shrugged before landing a heavier blow. “Did you come to train?” the man asked doubtfully, taking a look at Steve’s casual outfit.

Steve winced internally. Time to use your words, Rogers, he thought.

“You’ve known Tony for a long time, right?” he started. Rhodey raised one eyebrow in surprise before slowly nodding. “Right, of course,” Steve added. “So you’ve seen what he’s like when he’s in a relationship.”

Rhodey snorted. “A relationship? Yeah, right. Look, I love the man, I do, but his only stable relationship ever has been with Pepper. Before that, well, he was a lot of fun at parties, let me tell you.”

Steve nodded. “So if someone wanted to start a relationship with Tony, what should they do?”

Rhodey shrugged. “A few years ago, I would never have used the words stable relationship and Tony in the same sentence but he and Pepper really had something good. And it lasted longer than any of them had thought it would. Why do you ask? You’re not trying to get them back together? Because that won’t work,” Rhodey pointed out.

Steve shook his head. “No, I’m just- Well- I’m trying to learn more about my teammates, that’s all.”

Rhodey stared at him, his arms coming to a stop. “Know the enemy, all that jazz,” he supplied.

“Exactly,” Steve agreed without thinking. He froze. “Wait, what did you say?”

Rhodey burst out laughing. “Man, I thought Sam was pulling my leg but you’re really taking that book seriously, aren’t you?”

“What did Sam tell you?”

“Nothing much, just that you’ve been acting weird since you’ve started reading that book and that it might have something to do with Tony, as usual.”

Steve crossed his arms over his chest. “That’s not-” he exclaimed. “Okay,” he admitted with a sigh. “So, will you help me?”

“Will I help you win over my best friend using a centuries-old book?” Rhodey asked. “That sounds like a recipe for disaster. Seriously, why don’t you just ask the guy out like – I don’t know – a normal person?”

“I’m- I’m not good with words,” Steve finally said.

“Are you kidding me, Rogers? I’ve been on the receiving end of some of your inspiring speeches, you’re fine, believe me.”

“That’s not the same, okay?” Steve tried to explain. “Every time I try telling Tony something it comes out all wrong and we end up fighting.”

“You have communication issues,” Rhodey noted. “So what? It happens to the best of us.”

“You don’t get it,” Steve sighed.

“Frankly, I don’t,” Rhodey acknowledged. “I don’t think any of us truly understands what’s going on between you two but I know you’re one of the good guys, Cap, so I won’t try to stop you. You’d probably deck me if I did anyway,” Rhodey added. Steve must have looked offended because Rhodey chuckled and quickly added, “Come on, I’m kidding, I know you wouldn’t. So- What do you want to know?”

 

_The quality of decision is like the well-timed swoop of a falcon which enables it to strike and destroy its victim._

“I hear you’ve been talking shit about me.”

Sam winced and briskly closed the fridge door.

“Dude, come on, don’t do that.”

“Rhodey told me you two have been talking about me behind my back,” Steve growled.

“Don’t give me that look, man, I’m just trying to help,” Sam told him, raising his hands in surrender. Steve glared. “What were you two talking about anyway?”

“It came to my attention that Rhodey’s known Tony for longer than any of us,” Steve explained.

“Huh, makes sense,” Sam nodded. “If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle,” he quoted.

Steve’s eyes widened. “You’ve read it?” he asked in disbelief.

“Of course, it’s standard reading in the army. Rhodes probably had to read it too at some point.”

Steve nodded. “So, you’ll help, right?”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“You’ve been on my case about Tony for months,” Steve reminded him.

“Yeah, okay. Hell, I kind of want a front seat to this disaster.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” Steve mumbled.

 

_So in war, the way is to avoid what is strong and to strike at what is weak._

Steve forgot all about his master plan as soon as he spotted Tony sitting on the couch in the communal area, surrounded by several messy stacks of paper. He saw the man run a hand through his hair and sigh in annoyance.

“Tough day?” Steve asked.

Tony straightened at once and plastered a smile on his face. “No more than usual,” he answered off-handedly.

Steve noticed the bags under the other man’s eyes and guessed that Tony had probably not been sleeping well for a while now.

“You’re usually not at the compound at this hour,” Steve pointed out.

“Well, I do own the building, you know,” Tony countered.

“That’s not what I meant,” Steve sighed. He took a step forward warily and sat down in the armchair near Tony.

“The Board’s been a real pain in my ass lately. This is the only place they won’t bother me.”

“What about your cellphone? They can still call you, can’t they?”

“I’ve unfortunately misplaced my phone,” Tony smirked. Steve gave him a look. “Okay, I misplaced it on purpose. My point is I couldn’t get any work done so I came here.”

“We’ve missed you,” Steve told him.

Tony snorted. “You saw me two days ago, Rogers.”

“For ten minutes while you worked on my suit,” Steve countered.

“Don’t tell me you’ve missed my dazzling wit,” Tony joked.

Steve pretended to think about it. “I can’t say that I have,” he smirked. “Besides, I’ve been hanging around Vision, he’s a funny guy.”

Tony gaped at him. “You take that back,” he warned as Steve burst out laughing. “I guess you don’t need the new improvements I had lined up for your suit then.”

“Come on, Tony-”

“Nope,” Tony said, barely containing a smile. “No more improvements for you.”

“I know you won’t be able to resist anyway,” Steve stated confidently.

“We’ll see about that,” Tony countered with an indulgent smile.

 

_If it is to your advantage, make a forward move; if not, stay where you are._

“This won’t work, guys,” Rhodey cut in, leaning over the table. “Tony’s suspicious by nature, you know that. It won’t do any good to try to trick him, even if it is for a good cause.”

“At first, then, exhibit the coyness of a maiden, until the enemy gives you an opening; afterwards emulate the rapidity of a running hare, and it will be too late for the enemy to oppose you,” Natasha quoted right into Steve’s ear. The man did not flinch but glared at the red-haired nonetheless.

“Good god, Romanoff,” Rhodey said. “Are you trying to give us a heart attack?”

“That’s what I’ve been saying, man,” Sam pointed out. “But nobody believes me.”

Natasha rolled her eyes at them. “How is it going, boys? Made any progress?” she asked.

“Let me guess,” Steve sighed. “You’ve read that damn book too.”

“As any spy should,” she shrugged.

“Welcome aboard, then,” Rhodey told her.

“What’s the plan?” Natasha asked, taking a look at the sheets of paper on the table. She took one in her hand and inspected it closely. “Whose handwriting is that?” she asked.

“Mine,” Sam answered curtly.

“Well, I can’t make out a damn word,” Natasha noted.

“We don’t have a plan,” Rhodey told her.

“Yet,” Steve added. “We can’t seem to agree on the right course of action,” he explained, glaring at Sam and Rhodey.

“I’m saying we need to act now,” the first one said. “In war, then, let your great object be victory, not lengthy campaigns.”

“And I say we should wait for the right time,” the other countered. “He will win who, prepared himself, waits to take the enemy unprepared.”

Natasha glanced at Steve. “Oh boy,” she muttered.

 

_Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are not expected._

“Steve? What are you doing here?” Tony exclaimed when Steve stepped out of the elevator at the Tower.

“I was around and I thought I’d stop by,” Steve explained nonchalantly. “I thought we could go out for lunch,” he added.

Tony gave him a look. “And how do you know I haven’t already eaten?” he challenged. Steve raised his eyebrow. “In my defense, I was working on new schematics for Wanda’s suit,” Tony added as they made their way out.

“Her suit’s fine,” Steve said.

“Which means there’s still room for improvement. Come on, Cap, that suit is just pieces of leather thrown together, I could at least make it bulletproof.”

“She probably won’t let you, you know. And besides, she can stop bullets with her mind,” Steve pointed out. “She doesn’t really need a bulletproof jacket.”

“I was thinking more along the lines of a cape, actually,” Tony told him. “How is she doing by the way?”

“Good, I think. She’s been working really hard to catch up with the others.”

“I can see it now: the Avengers boot camp,” Tony joked.

“Most of us do have military training, you know.”

“And Vision?” Tony asked, somewhat warily.

“He’s doing good- Good asset for the team too. It always helps having some more air support.” Tony nodded slowly. “I think Wanda’s helping him adapt to his new life.”

“Yeah, I think I saw something going on there,” Tony pointed out.

Steve shrugged. “It’s kind of cute actually,” he smiled.

 

_Amid the turmoil and tumult of battle, there may be seeming disorder and yet no real disorder at all._

“Sam said you were out having lunch with Stark,” Wanda accused as soon as Steve got back to the compound.

Steve hung his jacket before turning around. Wanda was leaning against the doorframe of his bedroom with her arms crossed, a frown on her face.

“Look, Wanda-”

“Sam also told me what you were all planning,” she added in a small voice. “How can you even think about it?”

“Wanda, I know what you think of Tony and I understand. I’m not asking you to like him; I’m asking you to trust me. He’s one of the good guys.”

“You keep saying that,” Wanda said, frustrated.

“And you keep refusing to see that he’s changed,” Steve countered, raising his voice. Wanda’s eyes widened in surprise and she recoiled instinctively. “Wanda,” Steve sighed, taking a step towards the girl. He gently put his hands on her shoulders.

Wanda took a deep breath. “I’m not happy with this,” she told him bluntly. “But Vizh and I are willing to help, if you need us,” she concluded.

“Thanks.”

 

_Thus it is that in war the victorious strategist only seeks battle after the victory has been won._

The team had left the compound after helping Steve planning his evening with Tony. Everyone had taken part in the plan, even Wanda who had proposed cooking some paprika chicken for the occasion. Sam and Rodhey had moved the furniture around, removed the extra chairs and set up a table in the middle of the dinning space. The décor did not look like much and Sam had joked more than once about adding some candles. Steve had ultimately decided against it. The Avengers compound had finally started to feel like home to Steve. During their time as Avengers, Tony had already provided them with two places they could finally start to call home. Unfortunately, nobody had ever told Tony that and Steve hoped he could one day make the man see it for himself.

The sun was setting by the time Tony made it to the compound.

“Hey, Cap,” he greeted warmly. “Romanoff called, she needs me to fix her Widow’s bite. You wouldn’t happen to know where she is, would you?”

Steve smiled. Natasha had told him she would lure Tony into coming to the compound but had not given any information on how she intended to proceed.

“She’s not here at the moment,” Steve informed him.

“What do you mean she’s not here? That’s fine,” he added quickly. “I don’t strictly need her to fix up her gear.”

“No, Tony,” Steve laughed. He grabbed Tony’s arm gently as the other man turned around. “She doesn’t actually need you to fix anything, or maybe she does- I don’t know, but that’s not why she called you here.”

Tony stared at him suspiciously. Then, he looked around and finally seemed to notice the dining table. “I should have known,” he stated. “Romanoff wouldn’t be caught dead asking for my help. So what’s the plan, Rogers?” he asked flippantly.

“How about getting you to call me Steve for a change, huh?” he suggested. Tony stared at him unblinkingly. “I was thinking dinner, and then a movie. Vision picked up a few ones we might enjoy.”

“First Romanoff, now Vision,” Tony listed. “Did you get everyone involved?”

“Wanda cooked,” Steve supplied.

Tony raised an eyebrow. “Well, color me impressed. I know the girl doesn’t like me very much.”

“She’ll warm up to you. She just needs time.”

“I’m not so sure about that.”

Steve sighed. This was a conversation for another day. “Come on, we should eat while it’s still hot.”

“So that’s what’s been going on lately,” Tony pointed out as Steve served the food. Steve glanced at him nervously. “You could just have told me, you know.”

Steve sat down opposite Tony. “I’m more of a man of action.”

“Yeah, don’t I know that,” Tony grinned cheekily.

The two of them managed to spend a pleasant evening without arguing even once which, Steve had to admit, was a fairly rare occurrence. They seemed to fall into a familiar pattern during the course of the evening. Steve just hoped Tony would start spending more time at the compound with them all.

“I’m kind of curious to see what kind of movie Vision has picked up,” Tony said as they cleared the table.

When they entered Steve’s bedroom a few minutes later, the man froze. Sam and Rhodey had apparently discarded his idea of setting up a couch in his room. Those sneaky bastards.

It did not really matter in the end as Steve and Tony spent the best part of the evening heavily making out on the bed.

 

A FEW DAYS LATER

_The direct and the indirect lead on to each other in turn. It is like moving in a circle—you never come to an end. Who can exhaust the possibilities of their combination?_

“Hey, Sam,” Wanda called from the other side of the room. Sam glanced up in surprise. “Have you seen Steve?” the girl asked.

“Yeah, I think he’s in his office,” Sam answered. Wanda nodded wordlessly and turned on her heels. “I wouldn’t go in there if I were you,” he added nonchalantly. “Tony’s visiting.”

Wanda made a face. “This can wait,” she said and sat down next to Sam.

 

**THE END**


End file.
